A RARE 'CHICKEN BONE' JADE 'TAOTIE' CENSER AND COVER


QianlongWell carved with a bowl-shaped body surmounted by a waisted neck and square-lipped rim, the sides finely carved in low relief with a band of taotie masks, flanked by stylized mythical beast head handles, the base carved with three mythical beast masks above three-toed claws that appear to grasp the short, stepped foot ring, the domed cover similar carved with taotie masks and surmounted by a circular openwork dragon finial, the opaque white stone with black veining. 7in (17.7cm) width (2).
|清乾隆 雞骨玉仿古饕餮紋蓋爐Provenance:Virginia Hobart (1876-1958), thence by descentInspired by the shape and decoration of archaic bronze gui food vessels of the Zhou dynasty, the present lot is a fine example of the stylistic developments during the 18th century spurred on by the directives of the Qianlong emperor. Aiming to 'restore the ancient ways', the Qianlong emperor wished to reinstate the intrinsic qualities of simplicity, sincerity and happy exuberance of the ancient cultures. For this purpose, he instructed the court to collect drawings of antiquities, such as the Xi Qing Gujian (Catalogue of Xiqing Antiquities), which served as the blueprint for the designs of contemporary vessels. See Chang Li-tuan, The Refined Taste of the Emperor: Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Ch'ing Court, Taipei, 1997, pp.49-50. A related Qianlong period spinach jade censer and cover, was sold in our London rooms, 11 May 2017, lot 237； and a chicken bone jade example from the collection of Harold E. Stack was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 24 Nov 2012, lot 216.